Forgetting You, But Not The Time
by Ember Nickel
Summary: Elfangor and Loren, together and apart. A hundred stories in thirty words or less.
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: This was written for the "30 words or less" challenge on the Harry Potter Fanfiction Challenges forum (they said it could be for another fandom.) Each of the hundred prompts had to be used for a story of thirty words or less-sometimes my count didn't agree with OpenOffice, but I went with mine anyway! These are in chronological order, and a few rely on specific phrasings from "The Andalite Chronicles". I've actually written it all already, but I'll post in pieces because, hey, for once I can. There will be nine chapters.

Double parentheses are for thoughtspeak. The lyrics leading off each chapter are all by Dar Williams.

_I went to Vietnam  
I went for peace  
They dropped their bombs  
Right where my government knew I would be  
_

65. Don't Leave Me

"I'm a soldier," he said. "I'm going to go fly on a big plane and go fight and keep you safe." And he hugged her.

78. Emotional

((Come on, Mom, it's time.))

((I know,)) she said, with effort.

((He'll be fine,)) said Noorlin.

37. Let Me Out

They didn't seem to understand her screams. It wasn't fair. The most interesting event of her life shouldn't have been an abduction by _anybody_.

62. Confident

Maybe he could watch Arbron fight Sofor sometime. Then he could pick up on the other _aristh's_ giveaways.

46. Damsel in Distress

Apparently, the creature pointing the Dracon beam at _him_ was a female from a Level Six civilization.

Some rescue mission.

80. Around the Corner

There were scientists on Earth who would probably kill to figure out how the artificial gravity worked, and she was the kid who randomly got to hang out with aliens.

21. Memories

They would alter her memory, change her mind, hide the truth about aliens from humans.

Were they any better than Yeerks?

17. Behind My Back

"They could be doing their little telepathy thing all the time! Talking about us? Aren't you scared?"

"Not really, no."

96. Reach

((I just think it's funny that for all our technology, the _Skrit Na_ have a farther reach than we do.))

14. Past, Present, Future

"I know you said a time machine could be dangerous. But how do we know somebody won't...hasn't...already used it to go back and change the world to _this_?"

51. Not Thinking

She had thought they were similar, but seeing him kill whatever they were so _naturally_, she hoped they weren't anything alike.


	2. Chapter 2

_I got lost in my travels  
I met Leo the lion  
Met a king and met a giant  
With their errant light_

71. Anger Welling

She wished the Andalites had never come because nothing the Skrit Na could do would be worse than _that_.

64. Controlling

((So. You _care_ for the cadet.))

((Get out! Get out of my _head!_)) she screamed in the silence and didn't consider the possibility that something so filthy could be right.

77. Relief

She's not the one putting her hands on his chest or saying she's glad he survived, but that doesn't mean she wouldn't do it.

68. Home

So Arbron was staying behind? She didn't understand. Morph or no morph, he was still an _Andalite_. How could one of them call another planet home?

50. Help Me

It had only been a few days, but already she felt closer to the alien than the other human.

25. Rule Breaking

((Is that some illegal weapon?))

((A species that self-righteous doesn't make anything illegal.))

30. Going in Circles

She wouldn't have minded being genuinely lost. It was him _scared_ to act that frightened her.


	3. Chapter 3

_There's the weak and the strong  
And the many stars that guide us  
We have some of them inside us_

13. Turned Off

She didn't know what was going on, but if he was trying to reach that panel, she would do anything to get him there.

76. Testing the Limits

She couldn't look to him to protect her when he knew as little about the place as she did, so she reached out and touched the edge of the universe.

5. Good Question

"So I guess if you're not erasing my memory, I might as well ask. Why don't you have mouths?"

48. To Save a Life

Frank's Pro Shop Twins didn't have a closer, but it was definitely a save situation.

40. Dead Tired

It had only been a week, and already he was sick of the war.

For the first time, he respected Alloran. At least the War-Prince had kept going.


	4. Chapter 4

_First it was question  
Then it was a mission  
How to be American  
How to be a Christian_

58. Missing Out

Her friends spent the last few years of high school worrying and dating and planning for the future. So did she, in her way.

1. Reality Check

((This _is_ Earth? Not another new universe?))

"What is that _thing_?"

"...Yes, I think it is."

55. Nature

"Hide it in the forest, nobody will dig it up here."

((Oh. These are your _Garibahs_?))

94. Shallow

"We can only dig so far on our own. Besides, we'll be able to keep an eye on it."

16. Men

((There was a human right there. Why couldn't I have acquired it?))

"Uh, Elfangor, you're gonna have to get used to telling human men and women apart."

67. Modesty

"Um," she said, "Elfangor?"

He'd called it "artificial skin", but she'd never realized exactly _how_ alien it was to Andalites.

19. Cut It Out

"I don't understand. And-duh. And-duh! Am I not pronouncing the sounds correctly? Ekt."

73. Companionship

The nice thing about being eighteen is that you have lots of independence. It's handy when you have to watch out for someone who won't get along on his own.

88. Beauty

His sample size—two young people and the pictures in the Skrit Na ship—was small, but he never considered the possibility that she was actually unattractive by human standards.

12. Disaster

An _infestation_. Of a _War-Prince_, no less.

With effort, they remembered that two _arisths_ had gone missing, presumed dead.

Nobody remembered the aliens.

60. Why Not

He chewed his first bite, a look of rapture growing on his face. "I must experience this taste again! Tay-aste!"

"See? _This_ is why we have mouths."

44. Sunset

At home it would be time for the morning ritual.

66. Different

Loren's other friends were giggly girls, softball teammates, rowdy students. That Alan always seemed so serious.

It was a nice change of pace. Different was okay.

23. Light

Forgetting how strong his hands were, he just pulled a little to test its consistency, but it was so insubstantial it ripped right out.

"It's okay, it's just grass."

8. Out of Control

"So you like candy bars, huh?"

"Yes! The flavor is wonderful. Flaaa-vor."

"And...you threw away the wrapper?"

"What? Ut-tuh?"

26. Holding Hands

His human hands were very strong, but they were able to do gentle things.

6. Can you Hear Me?

Months passed before he wondered if he could thought-speak from within _that_ morph. Sure enough, he could, but never had a reason to.

_Most_ syllables were under control by then.


	5. Chapter 5

_All the things you treasure most  
Will be the hardest ones  
I will watch you struggle on  
Before the answers come_

42. Cheating

He was not familiar enough with human faces to understand the worry and incredulity blended together in the physics professor's.

32. Fake

"I thought you were a Level Six civilization! But you _are _familiar with...wait, where are all the Skrit?"

"This...is a TV show."

18. Study Sessions

"If you had just chosen a science major, this would not have been as difficult," he complained, but it wasn't like he minded spending time with her.

33. Amazing

"These foods...You are not as technologically backwards as you think. You are making very rapid progress. Without the distractions of taste, _you_ would be the power in the galaxy."

39. Rainbow

A neighbor's child marveled at what someone her age on the Andalite homeworld would have to calculate angles of refraction for.

He didn't mind it on Earth.

57. Attention

"There's nothing interesting in here. Why do you keep looking around?"

"I don't know." He turned to face forward again. "I just feel like I'm missing something."

72. Judgment

"You humans _are_ barbaric, to fight wars against each other."

"You hid something here that you didn't trust your...the Andalites with."

"Someone else hid it here first."

34. Tattered Edges

They thought the break was as clean as they could make it, while Aximili grew up and his parents wistfully told him about his brother every once in a while.

41. Wish Upon a Star

"It's not a particularly bright one. You can't see it from here. But it would be right about...there, I think," he said and pointed.

11. Drunk

He was more knowledgeable than he had been—he knew what he could and could not eat. He was human by then. _Humans_ were not overwhelmed by human food and drinks.

36. In Love

They weren't sure how it worked for other people; they'd just passed from aliens to allies in a week.

63. Confusing

"I no longer have my translator chip, but I absorbed enough of your language to communicate with you even now. What are those people babbling?"

9. I Love You

"It's just a human thing. We don't have thought-speak to explain our emotions, so we just have to keep using the same words over and over again."

"That is okay."

29. Transportation

"Are you _sure_ I can't interest you in a newer model?" said the salesperson, but he could not take his eyes off the yellow one.

45. Delusional

He did not know who she was, how she knew him, what a Visser was, or why he would be friends with the thirty-second such. And he didn't want to.

27. Fearful

He didn't mind if other people noticed his eccentricities, at first. It wasn't like "Andalite" meant anything to them

"If Chapman's still alive..."

Neither wanted to finish the sentence.

82. Cuts

He waited very patiently through yet another human ceremony, although he really just wanted to go ahead and _eat_ the cake.

100. Dance

Two legs inside shoes (not artificial hooves anymore) were all he needed.


	6. Chapter 6

_I'll take you to the mountains  
I will take you to the sea  
I'll show you how this life became  
A miracle to me_

4. Virgin

"Go ahead and "take the lead." You have been human for many years more than I have."

"That doesn't really give me an advantage when it comes to experience."

53. Disease

The moment was beautiful enough as it was. He didn't understand how white cylinders could have made it any better.

79. Stubborn

"Look, I know you love to eat, but nobody's going to want a computer named after a fruit."

83. Fresh

"I've seen you remember times down to the minute. You know perfectly well how long that's been in the fridge."

20. Dreamt

The grass tasted as wonderful as human food, and when he spoke to _Hala Fala_, he had nothing to confess.

7. I'm Telling

Though he never quite understood what was so funny about a programmer named Alan liking apples, he _was_ human. So it didn't violate Seerow's Kindness to accelerate progress.

38. Sickness

"It is the same with us. Once we have survived a disease, it rarely reoccurs."

"This would be so much easier if immunity got passed through DNA."

99. Squeaky Clean

"The point of having a tub is so you don't have to stand up."

"It's okay. I like standing in water."

47. Never Too Late

He told himself that, if things got bad, he could always go back and change them. There was always a chance.

84. Train of Thought

It was subtle, but sometimes it felt like he had to _work_ to be optimistic. But hoping for a better future is hard when your present has all you want.

52. Fine Line

"Listen, you're okay for now, but would you mind not spending so much time with Steve and them? Wouldn't want to give technology secrets to the _others_, would you?"

24. Dark

He still woke from dreams sometimes unsure where or even who he was.

43. Lurking

PERHAPS, SOMEDAY, THE UNIVERSE WILL BE SAFE FOR SUCH A LOVE.

BUT IT CANNOT BE MADE SAFE WHILE THIS ENDURES.


	7. Chapter 7

_But sometimes I will ask the moon  
Where it shined upon you last  
And shake my head and laugh and say  
It all went by so fast _

97. For You

It might have been a selfish reason to leave, but he needed a good reason to give up such an easy life for such a hard one.

56. Unfaithful

He told himself it didn't really count if she didn't remember him, while conceding some bias on his part.

54. Quitting You

((So you lured me away under false premises.))

NOT FALSE. INCOMPLETE.

((At least let me leave something for him. So he can understand. Someday.))

He wrote, then saw the timelines.

87. Recovery

The pain took a while to fade, and a selfish part of him wished he hadn't made it through the crash.

85. The Truth

_So Ellimists exist_, thought Feyorn. _Maybe these battles are really worth something._

93. Run Away

Had Feyorn had a moment of weakness, once?


	8. Chapter 8

_The farther you get,  
The closer to me  
Taj Mahal, Cameroon  
Back in time, to the moon_

61. Classy

Every once in a while her friends seemed too _young_, but that wasn't as bad as when they seemed to tell her she could do better than her husband.

89. Grief

Maybe it was just having to deal with losing her eyesight on top of everything, but she was surprisingly numb to the fact that her husband had just died.

10. Willingness

It wasn't that she didn't _want_ to be with him. But sometimes even the person you love the most belongs somewhere else.

3. Prince Charming

After he got promoted it was easier to turn people away. ((She's just attracted to my rank,)) he explained, and didn't have to go into the truth.

31. Psychotic

All the others she wrote off to the brain damage, but the blue one seemed real.

28. Honor

When you're out in space, you don't remember how famous you are on the planet that will never feel quite like home. You need other reasons to keep fighting.

75. My Life

When she felt too sorry for herself, she remembered that she didn't really know what she had had to lose.

15. Dysfunctional

"Hitched again? Congratulations."

"Shut up."

"There's twice as many of you now. You should have to take care of him twice as long."

He cussed at the dial tone.

95. Shine

It would be so easy to calculate Earth's position, to look for its sun among the many stars, but he couldn't risk one step towards nostalgia. So he did nothing.

49. With All My Heart

It's easier to love someone when you don't know any of their faults or why they're not there for you. You just desperately miss who you assume they are.

59. Broken

((So _how_ old were you when I was born?))

((You've been on Maximum Burn again, haven't you? That'll teach you to play with relativity.))

74. Left Out

He added another elaborate detail to a card that would never be read. At least school got out before _Father's_ Day.

92. Go The Distance

He was ranked high enough that he could have flown to Earth whenever he wanted, rift or no rift.

He waited for orders from the Electorate.

98. Pinky Promise

((Just leave her be.))

((Of course,)) said the Yeerk, testing his fingers.

Somehow making a deal with the parasite felt _familiar_.

91. Small World

He unsteadily guided the fighter down where the forest should have been. Where else could he go? At least _he_ was pulling the strings that time.

22. Finish This

((So,)) he said. Privately: he wouldn't explain the whole story to his lieutenants. ((_Now_ we finish what we began in a vortex.))

Elfangor had no mouth to smirk with.

70. Words

Other people's _hirac delests_ were unstructured, ineffable things to be shared mind-to-mind, but he hoped humans would _read_ it someday.


	9. Chapter 9

_And so I asked the light of the day,  
What's this rush for heaven  
And I saw a bird fly away  
And I could not ask again_

90. Background

((So, did Elfangor know Visser Three before Earth?))

((I think their spaceships collided once, or something. Nothing really important.))

86. Pain

((No one is so weak that they do not deserve love.))

69. Believe Me

It figured, in a crazy way. He was _there_; knowing about the aliens wasn't much more surprising. And it wasn't like he'd claimed something unbelievable; she _felt _what was happening.

35. Hero

"So, that ship is full of Andalites who wanted to wipe out the human species so the Yeerks couldn't infest us?"

((Right.))

"Okay. And what does "Elfangor" mean?"

2. Absolutely Alone

It had been years since she needed him, but after Champ died, she wished she'd appreciated him more when he was there.

81. I Remember

Tobias was gone and she sat on the couch alone. Then her heart broke with a pang of joy because everything suddenly felt _familiar_.


End file.
